Christmas With The Boys
by Dbz Chicka
Summary: This Christmas-fun story follows the adventures of Piccolo, Vegeta, goku, and company one holiday season leading up to the actual magical night. Babysitting, partying, and santa-imitations included. R&R Please!
1. And So It Begins

Hey everyone! Hope everyone's doing well. I'll be trying to update faster now-a-days. This fic is going to be a humorous/romantic Christmas story focusing on the time of probably during the Buu saga, or directly before it, where Trunks and Goten are still around the ages of 8. Enjoy! 

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Piccolo floated above his favorite meditation spot; The lake under the waterfall west of West City. He breathed in deeply, feeling very at peace with all around him. He enjoyed the ceaseless sound of running water. Sometimes when he was up at the Lookout, he would turn on the shower if he was too lazy to leave his living area, and meditate on top of the closed toilet in his boxers. This was of course, a very well kept secret. Piccolo remembered when the water line had first been installed, back when Kami was still around. He had to always act innocent when Kami, furious, would question him about the high water bill.

"Uhhh..." Piccolo looked up thoughtfully. "No, I've never let the water run longer than I need to shower..."

Kami growled and shook the papers of the bill furiously, "I didn't have that dang water line installed for you to waste it! Do you know how much it cost alone just for all the piping it took to get water all the way up here? Not to mention the pressurizer to DEFY gravity!"

Piccolo zoned out Kami continued to rant. He of course spoke of the new water line installed up the incredibly tall pillar that magically supported the Lookout far above the rest of the earth.

He persoanlly enjoyed the lake more. It was a natural, running source of peace, as well as fresh water. It was extremely revitalizing. He began to slip into deep mediation, the peace of his surroundings consuming him...

Suddenly a buzz against his thigh, as well as a high pitched ring, jolted him violently from his serenity. He almost fell out of the air, but caught himself just in time, floating uncerimoniously to his feet. He jumped again as the sensaion repeated, and he dug in his pockets to find the source of the noise. He pulled out a small, cellular flip phone.

He stared at it in blunt wonder. "What the...?" He almost dropped it as it rang again, vibrating his hand. He growled softly, a sweat drop running down his temple.

Before it could make the annoying noise again, he crushed it easily in his palm, letting the mechanical and plastic peices fall into the water like rain droplets. Mumbling, Piccolo decided trying to regain the blissful meditation he had attained moments ago was impossible, and heading back to the Lookout would be the most sensible conclusion. He flew off toward the sky, still wondering about the strange device.

---

Vegeta hung up the phone after trying a third time, this time hearing a disconnected number recording from a metalic-sounding woman's voice. He chuckled slightly and sat back in his chair. "Suppose he's heading home. I'll call in a few moments to make sure he gets there, first." Closing his eyes, he smirked wryly.

---

Piccolo pulled the turban from his head, his antennea popping up, as if happy to be free of the pressure. He tossed it onto the floor carelessly, the weight of it crashing loudly onto the ground, and then pulled off his heavier cape, letting it drop beside the turban. He walked through the doorwa leading to his livingquarters, scratching behind his ear, and began to head for his bed. A sharp ring jolted him feircely into shock, and he jumped about 5 feet into the air.

His head slowly turned to the small red device sitting on his usually empty corner table next to his couch. It vibrated as it rang, the reciever nearly falling off the supporting body of the telephone. He twitched slightly in irritation and moved to it, swiftly picking up the reciever to stop the sound immediately. He heard a distant voice come from the device. He held it to his ear.

"Who the hell is this!?" Piccolo growed angrily.

"Nice to talk to you too, Green Bean." The voice replied.

"Vegeta." Piccolo said in instant recognition. "Where the-"

"Both phones were submitted in your vicinity by my wife." Vegeta answered, cutting Piccolo off before he could finish his question. "She put the phone in the pants you set out for the next day last night, and this morning she hooked up the phone you're talking on now."

Piccolo really didn't like the way Vegeta sounded so all-knowing, and growled softly. "Shew had no permission or right to go through, or ENTER, for that matter, my personal living area!"

"This is Bulma, we're talking about, Piccolo." Vegeta said dryly, and Piccolo could hear the sarcasim in his voice, "Do you think she'll wait for permission?"

Piccolo's silence told Vegeta he was right, but didn't want to admit it. "That's besides the point." He mumbled in defeat.

"Anyway you can talk to her later about it..." Vegeta changed the subject. "The reason I called you is I have an invitation for you."

"That's all? Why didn't you just ask me face to face?" Piccolo growled in annoyance.

"Well, there's more to it then that..." Vegeta said, sighing slightly. "Bulma has a few favors to ask you, actually."

"And those would be?" Piccolo felt his eye-ridge twitching.

"Well," Vegeta said almost hesitantly as if sure that he would immmediately refuse the opportunity, "Bulma wants you to er...babysit the brats for a night in a few days."

"And," Vegeta said quickly, blocking Piccolo from being able to protest, "she wants you to babysit again in two weeks, but that time Goku and I will be there to help you."

Piccolo could feel his leg muscle spasming at this perposterous idea. "You want me to babysit those brats?" He asked cooly. "You can't be serious. I'm not good with children. I'd sooner kill them than send them to time out."

"I know," Vegeta said, "But you're the only option. Krillin and his family are off on some sort of vacation, Chi-Chi's dad is out of town, Bulma's parents are hosting a Christmas party the same night, and Kakarot and I are being dragged Christmas shopping with our wives. I even suggested Tien and Yamcha, but Bulma seems to be extra pissed at Yamcha for some reason and refused."

"What about Master Roshi and Oolong?" Piccolo asked desperately.

"If I want my son to get corrupted at an early age I'd rather let a hooker be his mother."

Piccolo almost opened his mouth to say something like "Well too late for that," but decided he'd save it for another opportunity. Right now he was so mad himself he didn't even feel like pissing Vegeta off. He mumbled quietly, "There's no other person in the world who can do it?"

"Bulma doesn't want to hire a stranger babysitter."

"Since when did she trust me?"

"Eh, I doubt she ever did."

"Then why is she asking me?!"

"She's desperate."

Piccolo groaned slightly. "Ugh..."

"So, will you do it then?"

Piccolo clenched his fist angrily. "Fine. But if I kill one of them you can't try and sue me, because I warned you."

Vegeta merely chuckled. "Can't gaurentee that."

"Me either." Piccolo said and slammed the phone down in frustration. He moved to the couch next to the table which the phone sat upon and collapsed on it, leaning back, closing his eyes and covering them with his hand. "Kami, Why me...?"

"Guess you're lucky." An elderly voice replied.

Piccolo opened one eye peeking through his fingers to see the dignified old earth-gaurdian standing before him. "Aren't you supposed to be...in me?"

"You're having another epic reaction to stress." Kami sighed, as if annoyed by the entire ordeal.

"Hey Piccolo!" A much younger voice called from the kitchen, "I'm grabbing a beer, all right?"

"Dammit, Nail!" Piccolo sat up and growled. "I told you to leave my beer alone!"

"Aww, come on, just one...I've got this killer headache."

"That won't help it any, you imbecile."

"Oh yeah. I meant to say I'm feeling really depressed and just got dumped by my girlfriend and need to drown my sorrows. Is that better?"

Piccolo didn't answer, growling slightly. "I hate when this happens."

Kami walked to the recliner and slowly sat himself down in it. "Me too. The emotional stress always inhabits you so much that we are forced from your being, like being kicked out of some bar by a bouncer into the alley when the bar gets too crowded, even if you were there fist." He mumbled in his frustration.

"Freakin' freeloader." Piccolo mumbled as Nail entered the room, popping his can of cold beer open and sitting with them.

"Hey, you never mind if I drink while I'm in you."

"Yeah because then I'M being effected, and that's all in one beer. Now it's like three and I'm out before I know it." He said, griping.

"Ah well, who cares?"

"I CARE!"

"Geez! Sooooorr-eee!" Nail said raising his brows.

Piccolo only mumbled.

"Piccolo, I really don't want to be around when the kids are hear, so go to the bar, get wasted, or go on vacation, because I want to be back in there and safe from the wrath of those little devils. Alright?" Kami said, never having been fond or tolerant with children. Plus, he feared their devious ways. "And if not, don't expect me to stick around here that night."

"That's messed up!" Piccolo raged, "I thought that when you brought me into this deal that you agreed that we'd always go through every frustration, happy time, and drunken moment together, through thick or thin!"

"Well, I don't know if that's EXACTLY how I worded it, but--"

"SO!? That's what you meant!"

Kami crosses his arms pouting, looking to the side in a stubborn way. "Hmph. I dont remember that."

Piccolo growled and gripped his hands into fists angrily. "Yeah, whatever." He huffed in anger and stood and turned away, much like a child would who didn't win an argument.

Kami sighed softly, as if this situation was all too familiar. "Piccolo, come on, I didn't mean it like that."

"Did too!"

"Did not." Nail interjected.

"You, shut up!" Kami growled. "You aren't part of this!"

Piccolo stuck his tongue out triumphantly at Nail, "Ha! Yeah you aren't part of this!"

"Shut up, Piccolo!"

"Don't tell me to shut up!"

---

About an hour later, everything had cooled down finally in Piccolo's living quarters. Of course, Kami had been forced to seperate the two, before they killed each other. Piccolo sat on his bed arms crossed and layed down and stretched some. He opened the beer he had snuck from the kitchen on the way to his room, and took a long drink. He slowly felt himself growing warm with a content, relaxing feeling. He sighed softly and closed his eyes.

When he woke up again, he suddenly realized he felt whole again. Well, whole in the way he had become accustomed to. The other two souls had seemed to merge into his own, and without them, he felt somewhat incomplete. He finished his beer which sat upon the bedside table.

He looked forward, out the window, crushing the can in his hand easily. He tossed it into the trash can. He didn't want to baby-sit. He didn't like children. He was not patient with children. He did not find them "cute," "adorable," or "innocent" in the slightest. He knew that they all really had evil intensions within their little pranks, and little jokes, and little supposed-to-be-cute-but-are-really-annoying-as-hell-antics.

He sighed. "Why me?" He looked up, as if asking a higher force the question.

---

-Three days later-

"Vegeta! VEGETA! ARE YOU READY YET!"

"Hold on a dang minute, WOMAN!"

"And you say that WE take a long time to get ready!"

Trunks and Goten listened to the chorus of yelling from Trunks' room. Goten looked to Trunks innocently. "Are they mad at each other?"

"No, they do this all the time." Trunks answered.

"Don't you ever get a headache?"

"Nah, I kinda block it out after a while."

"Oh." He twitched as Bulma shrieked especially loud, "I don't see how you can."

Trunks didn't even flinch at the scream, "Yeah, well after a few hours straight you get used to it."

"Well, sometimes my mom can sound like that too." Goten admitted, "But my dad doesn't shout back."

"Yeah, I've heard her." Trunks shuddered.

"Boys!" Vegeta slammed the door open, making both of them jump. "Time to go. Downstairs, NOW!"

"Here it goes." Trunks sighed some, rushing down the stairs with Goten.

-----

Well, that's it folks! Hope you guys enjoy, please review, more to come soon!


	2. Hide And Seek

**Hey guys, thanks for the reviews! Hope ya'll like the chapter. **

**---**

Friday had rolled around. Piccolo sighed. Vegeta had called him earlier, alerting him they were on the way to drop off the kids. He felt nervous. He had never dealt with children...alone. Piccolo glanced at the clock compulsively, as if every minute the horrible event was drawing closer. Leaning back in his recliner, he mumbled again, turning the TV on to help divert his mind.

**--- **

"Are we there yet?"

"No."

"Are we there yet?" The question was boosted with hopefulness.

"No." The answer was firmer.

"Are we there YET?"

"NO!"

Trunks fell silent, knowing that whenever the air car pulled forward suddenly it was Vegeta's foot pressing angrily against the gas. He always enjoyed pushing his parents to their last nerve, even though it was indeed very dangerous. Goten sat, afraid of Vegeta AND Bulma, not wanting to anger either of them. Trunks kicked his feet against the seat, where they dangled, boredly. He looked out the window, trying to pass the time. Silence buzzed in the elevating vehicle.

He couldn't hold it in any longer. "Are we there yet?"

"NO!!!" Vegeta growled, as if he had been dreading the unavoidable question since the silence began. "If you ask again, you are going to be very sorry!"

Trunks was quiet once more, the tension now in the car at an all-time high.

With relief, Bulma said quickly, "We're here."

Vegeta mumbled as he pulled the car up and then down, slowly lowering it onto the flat surface of the lookout. He set it down gently with practiced gentleness, and turned off the motor.

It was early December, and it was very cold this year, especially at this elevation. Bulma was not surprised in the least, seeing snow covering the entire lookout. A rare event, yet it still fell.

"It wasn't snowing when we were at home." Goten said pulling his coat on, looking out the window in wonder.

"Well, the level of moisture up here is higher, and the higher up, the colder the temperature. So it's snowing up here, but the snow melts and even evaporates by the time it gets to us." Bulma explained, smiling.

Piccolo glared out the window. It was getting dark, and snow fell ceaselessly. It was about 6:30; the time Vegeta had notified him that they would drop the children off. He mumbled and looked back to the TV, hoping they were to be late. Inside his quarters it was warm and dry, and he liked it that way. It's not that the cold really bothered him, but the wet slushiness of snow, and the clean beauty of it annoyed him. He rather not go outside in these conditions unless necessary.

Goten and Trunks laughed as they ran through the falling snow, tongues out to catch falling snow flakes. They were in thick coats, scarves, and caps, as well as mittens, courtesy of Chi-Chi. Bulma and Vegeta followed less eagerly, at a walk.

"Goten, Trunks, get back here." Vegeta growled slightly. "You don't even have any idea where you're going."

They let the two adults lead, grabbing handfuls of snow and packing them together, throwing the snowballs at one another. Trunks began creating a huge ball of snow, and Goten blinked watching. Trunks grinned and nodded towards his parents. Goten's eyes widened and he shook his head quickly. The two adults stopped in front of a large oak door and knocked loudly.

Trunks continued adding to the snowball. He picked it up easily despite its size and chuckled evilly walking toward the two unsuspecting victims.

Piccolo heard the knock. He didn't move. Maybe if he didn't answer, they would just go away. And forget about the whole thing. They could take the kids with them, right? He sighed as the knock repeated and turned the TV off. Fine, he'd do it. But only this one time...And maybe the next time, but after that that was ALL!

He grunted as he pulled himself up from his chair, walking to the door, mumbling under his breath. He pulled it open to see Bulma and Vegeta standing in the doorway. Suddenly the next thing he saw was nothing but white as something hard, wet, and cold collided with his face, blinding him and causing him to stumble back, more from shock than the force of the hit.

Goten's eyes grew as large as baseballs. "TRUNKS! YOU MISSED!"

Trunks stepped back gulping, his eyes also wide. "Eheheh...Oops." He gulped again as he received cold glares from his parents, as Piccolo, twitching, wiped the snow from his face and eyes.

"Hello to you, too." Piccolo said surprisingly calmly, though it was easy to see, even from Trunks and Goten's distance, the large pulsing vein in his temple.

Vegeta growled and marched to the two kids who were too frozen with fear to run. He grabbed them both by the back of their jackets and pulled them into the house, where Bulma and Piccolo already stood inside the entry. Vegeta shut the door, cutting off the rush of cold air from the outside.

Piccolo glared in annoyance at the children. He knew that tonight was going to be a long night. He looked quickly to Vegeta. "What time will you be picking them up, again?" He asked. Bulma answered for Vegeta, since he only gave Piccolo a clueless, blank stare.

"We'll be back by midnight. But make sure the kids go to bed by at least 9." She gave the two children, who were trying to look as innocent as possible, a warning look.

"Oh, don't worry." Piccolo said, quickly thinking over in his mind where the two would sleep until their parents came, "I even have a feeling they are going to want to go to bed early tonight."

"Fat chance," Trunks mumbled under his breath, just audible enough for Piccolo's sensitive ears to pick up.

"You'll see." Piccolo said in his regular tone. Everyone looked at him, as Trunks jerked some from the surprise, glancing at him and mumbling again.

"If you have anything to say kid, you might as well say it out loud and clear." Piccolo said, crossing his arms, looking down at the much shorter being, "Because I can hear every word you say."

Trunks looked up at him uncomfortably, swallowing. He looked quickly to the side, half-glaring, not replying.

Bulma wanted to break the silence, and cleared her throat. "Anyways, you two behave. Piccolo will take care of you if you don't, and after that I'll take care of you too."

"And then it will be my turn." Vegeta added, smirking.

The two gulped and nodded quickly.

"Good." Bulma kissed both of them on the forehead, thanked Piccolo again, and was gone in a whirl of snow; followed by Vegeta, whose farewell was "Later brats, good luck Green Bean."

The three stood looking at each other in silence. Goten shifted uncomfortably on his feet as Trunks and Piccolo stared into one another's eyes as if seeing who could hold the gaze the longest. Goten cleared his throat slightly.

"Umm...Piccolo?"

"What?"

"I need to go."

"Go where?"

"You know..." Goten swallowed and rocked back and forth on his heels. "_Go_."

"You're not going anywhere."

"But I need to!" Goten pouted.

"TOO BAD!"

Trunks rolled his eyes. "He needs to go to the bathroom."

Piccolo blinked slightly. He sweat dropped. "Down the hall, second door on the right."

Goten ran off in the direction Piccolo indicated. Trunks looked at Piccolo. "Stupid."

Piccolo lifted a brow. "So, decided to stop mumbling I see."

Trunks grinned widely. "You told me to. Just was following orders."

"Well speaking your mind like I told you to doesn't mean you're going to get away with it." Piccolo growled a bit. "So I'd keep your comments to yourself, though I know it's hard when you have such a big mouth."

Trunks growled softly but decided to take the advice, and kept quiet. A moment later a toilet flushed, and another moment later, Goten ran into the room.

"Ahhh..." Goten looked relieved. "I feel better. I was holding it the whole trip here." He said innocently.

Piccolo sweat dropped. "Nice to know," Trunks said, sticking out his tongue.

Goten shrugged some and looked down, drawing an imaginary circle with his toe.

"So, Piccolo, what do you like to do for fun?" Trunks asked. Piccolo blinked as suddenly Trunks was directly in front of him, looking up at him curiously.

"Err..."

"Do you like playing Hide-And-Seek?"

Piccolo stepped back in shock as suddenly Goten had seemed to appear right beside Trunks. He swallowed and looked down at them hesitantly. "Hide and...what?"

Goten and Trunks looked slowly to each other, as if in silent awe at Piccolo's stupidity.

"Hide...and...Seek." Trunks said very slowly, as if to make sure Piccolo could comprehend.

"What the he-" He caught himself barely, remembering Bulma getting mad at him before for cursing in front of the children. He had thought it rather contradictory when she began scolding him, while at the same time she cussed him out, with much worse words than he had used. "What the heck is _'Hide-And-Seek?'_"

Goten and Trunks again traded sympathetic glances. "It's a game." Trunks explained. "Where there are hiders, who hide." He said this again somewhat slowly, to make sure Piccolo caught it all. "And one person who looks, or seeks. So that's why it's called Hide-And-Seek."

"Will you play?" Goten asked, tugging on Piccolo's pant leg, his huge innocent eyes pleading up at him.

"I don't play games."

"Please?" Goten asked, Piccolo could see the hope fading from his eyes.

"Ugh..."

Trunks and Goten jumped in joy, taking the sigh as a sign of giving in.

"Not it!" Both boys yelled in unison.

"Uhhh...Not it?" Piccolo asked, lost.

"Haha, you're last, so you're it! That means you're the seeker." He said, a bit more slowly.

"Fine." Piccolo mumbled.

"Count to 50, spin around three times, and start looking! You can't look while we hide so cover your eyes, and no peeking!" Trunks said, hopping up and down in his excitement. "Oh!" He added, "And when you finish counting you have to say 'ready or not, here I come!' really loud so we know that you're looking, k?"

Piccolo watched the two bouncing children, vaguely wondering what kind of drugs Bulma gave them. "Fine." He sighed and covered his eyes with one hand.

"One..."

"Wait!" Goten said quickly.

"What is it?" Piccolo uncovered his eyes.

"We have to have a home base, which means that if a hider gets to it without getting tagged by the seeker, then they are safe. And if the other does too, the seeker has to be it again."

"Alright, alright." Piccolo said. "Now go hide." He covered his eyes once more and resumed counting.

The boys shot off into different directions, almost out of the room before Piccolo even finished the word. His sensitive ears heard one of them shuffling around in his bedroom, and the other trying to scale something in the kitchen. He counted slowly, never looking, finally reaching 50, hearing no noise whatsoever. He skipped the rule of spinning, walking toward the bedroom, and called as he had been instructed," Ready or not, here I come."

He was surprised that he could now hear nothing from the two. They had been noisy enough for him to be able to tell what rooms they were in, but now he wasn't so sure as he entered the bedroom. He closed his eyes, concentrating, and felt a small ki near by. They were keeping their power levels low, so it would be hard to find their exact locations by such manners alone. He mumbled and looked around for obvious hiding areas. He checked behind the curtains, behind the chair sitting in the corner, under the bed, in the closet, in the light fixture, under the rug, in the covers of the bed, behind the picture frame...

"ARGH!" He growled loudly looking around in frustration. _where the hell is he!?_ "I know you're in here kid! COME OUT NOW!"

He received no reply. He mumbled and left the room. He thought maybe the kid was close to the wall in the next room, so he got the signal confused...He opened the door to the extra bathroom, which shared the wall on the right side of his bedroom. Piccolo looked around the large bathroom, which was more of a small spa area. He searched it thoroughly, tried the closet on the left wall of his bedroom, and fed up, returned to the living room.

He passed Trunks sitting on the couch, and mumbled. He blinked twice and looked back to him with a slight growl. "Where were you hiding!?"

"The bedroom." Trunks grinned triumphantly.

Piccolo's eye twitched. " The bedroom!? WHERE!?"

He suddenly held a hand out to silence Trunks before he could answer. His ears seemed to twitch with awareness as he slowly turned his head toward the kitchen. He heard a faint rustling, as if things were being moved in an internal place within the kitchen.

"Stay." He said to Trunks, who glared at the command, walking steadily but slowly toward the kitchen. He stepped very carefully onto the tile floor as it changed from the carpet of the living room, not making any noise. He could still hear the noise, but it was faint now, as if near stopping. He quickly homed in on the source of the noise, coming to the cabinet beneath the sink, his footsteps still soundless.

He slowly reached toward the handle...

He pulled it open and the second it was a foot open, an orange and blue flash burst from the cabinet, knocking cleaning supplies everywhere, shooting directly between Piccolo's long legs. Piccolo turned in time to watched, stunned, as Goten hopped onto the couch in the other room, joining Trunks and his laughter.

_Frickin' little speed demon._ Piccolo thought while sweat dropping, returning to the room, the giggling, snickering, and all-out laughing of the children growing louder in his ears.

He mumbled as the children jumped on the couch in their celebration, chanting: "You're it again! We win!"

"Stop jumping on the couch." He growled. They blinked and let their jumping end, landing on their rears, sitting and looking at him.

"I've had enough fun and games." Piccolo said, glaring at the two. "It's time for bed."

"Bed!?" Trunks protested automatically. He quickly looked to the clock. "It's only 7:15! Mom said bed time isn't until--"

"Do I look like your mommy, kid?" Piccolo shut him off, silencing him. "That's what I thought. Now I'm in charge, and you are going to do what I say. And I say BED! NOW!"

The two jumped to their feet quickly at the raising of his voice, Trunks leading the sprint to the bedroom.

"Hold it right there." Piccolo said in a low voice, making the two freeze in their tracks.

"I never said you could sleep in my bed. Come here."

They glanced at each other nervously, before doing as they were told.

Piccolo glared down at them for a moment, before turning and walking into another hallway. "Follow me."

He led them to a guest bedroom, with two beds.

"Now get in bed. I don't want to hear another sound from this room." Piccolo growled softly. "And believe me," He added, pointing to his ears, "I'll hear it."

They clambered into their beds. Piccolo shut off the light and started to close the door, when a small voice stopped him.

"M-mr. Piccolo?" Gotenstuttered timidly.

Piccolo paused, the door almost closed, then openedit again, glancing to Goten wearily. "Yes, kid? What do you want?"

"Can I have a night-light?" Goten peeked out from the covers, his eyes large and pleading above the edge covering his nose.

Piccolo looked at him in silence for a moment. "Ugh..." He said. "Fine."

He walked into the room. He opened his hand, letting his palm face upwards, and a small orb of light formed an inch from his palm, the light of it a soft blue color, the orb growing larger until it was the size of a baseball. It lit the room like soft moonlight. He pushed t from his palm to the night stand between the beds, where it floated peacefully, shedding a cool but comforting light over the room.

Goten grinned thankfully. "Thanks Mr. Piccolo."

He grunted his response and walked out, closing the door.

"Night Trunks." Goten whispered, settling in the bed comfortably.

"Night my ass." Trunks growled quietly.

Goten's eyes widened at the naughty word. "Trunks, if your mom heard you-"

"Yeah, yeah. Look, we aren't going to bed yet. He has no right to push this cruelty on us!"

"It's not that bad, I like sleeping." Goten replied softly.

"So do I, but not at 7 o' clock at night!"

"But..."

"Shh! Listen, I have anideahow to get out of here."

"But Trunks-"

"Shut up, Goten! I'm trying to tell you my plan!"

Goten fell silent, pouting slightly, knowing that most of Trunks' plans got them both into trouble.

"Okay, now listen..." Trunks smirked, the soft light of Piccolo's ki night-light illuminating his mischievous face.

**--- **

**Hope you guys enjoyed this chapter, please review! I decided that since it _snowed_ today--a**** VERY rare occurrence here where I live--a new chapter would be a good way to celebrate it. I'll try to get another one out Christmas Eve or tomorrow. This fic will linger after Christmas though, because one, I can't finish it in time, and two, I want to sort of extend the feeling of Christmas, one of the few happy times for many a year. So, keep an eye out, and thanks for the reviews!**


	3. Fun and Merriment

**Enjoy. **

**_It's still snowing!!!_ EEEE! **

**---**

Piccolo let out a soft sigh as he sat down on the couch, leaning back and trying to get comfortable. He heard faint murmuring from the room he had left, but wasn't serious about the threat. He knew that they'd probably whisper about how evil he was for sending them to bed so early. But he didn't really care. They'd fall asleep eventually. That's what he wanted. Peace and quiet.

He closed his eyes and put his hands behind his head, hoping that for some reason the part might end early, and Vegeta and Bulma would return to collect the brats ahead of schedule. He shuddered suddenly at a horrible thought. What if they got in a wreck or something happened to them on the way back?

Then they would never come to pick the kids up.

He twitched at the thought. Oh yeah, plus they would then be orphans...and Vegeta. Ah, he'd never be able to have drinking parties again with the bastard. Bulma...well....he wouldn't really miss Bulma.

His eyes widened. What if that meant...that he would have to take care of the two forever!?

He rather be killed by a mob wielding heavy, dull objects.

Piccolo shook his head to clear his mind of the frightening thoughts, assuring himself that they would be safe and arrive in one piece. At least he hoped so. He prayed to Kami it would be so. But what if something did happen to them?! He couldn't take care of children for so long. He'd probably end up hurting them rather than helping them grow up and live long fulfilling successful lives. Hell, he'd probably kill them before they could. He never could imagine himself as a successful parent.

The consequences rushed through piccolo's mind at a fast pace, making him feel disorientated and jumpy. He swallowed and grasped his chest. He could feel it coming again. One of his panic attacks. He closed his eyes tightly and leaned forward. He felt himself slipping further...Everything molded into black.

When he awoke again, he had the strange feeling of...being somehow unwhole. He sat up from his slumped position in realization. "Dammit!" He growled and looked around, wondering where his two counterparts had gone to. He felt weak without them inside his being, and felt exposed and half-completed, like a jig-saw puzzle left unfinished.

"Kami? Nail? I know you're around here somewhere." He growled, and walked to the bedroom. No sign of either of them. He checked the other rooms, but not the guest room, not wanting to awake the kids. He went to the kitchen and counted the beers. _Hmm...no beers missing. Strange..._

He knew that it was common for Nail, as soon as released, to steal a beer or two from the fridge while Piccolo was still unconscious from the separation. Finding the fridge untouched as he had left it was a very rare occurrence.

"Hmmm..." Confused, he wondered what was going on. Usually he at least found Kami nearby after these occurrences. Where would they have gone to?

**--- **

"Do you think the kids are doing alright, Vegeta?" Bulma asked her husband, seated in a plush dinning chair at one of the many round tables adorned with a flowing white table cloth, decorated by an elaborate center peace with candy canes and a candle, as well as Christmas tinsel and ornaments.

Vegeta yawned, not even considering the question, "I'm sure they're doing fine." He replied, boredly. He lifted his wine glass to his lips taking a long drink.

Bulma growled slightly, sensing his carelessness. "I'm serious! I have a bad feeling..."

Vegeta yawned and sat back. "Come on woman, you always have those bad feelings. And hardly anything actually bad happens. Last time you had one of these "premonitions" the worst thing that happened was that that damned cat of your Father's almost choked on a marble."

"Still...I have a feeling it's something really bad this time."

Vegeta sighed and set his glass down. "Bulma, now you're having feelings about your feelings. Really, just relax."

"Maybe we should pick them up early. I mean the party isn't really important..."

"You've been looking forward to this damn thing for weeks," Vegeta said, looking at her sternly. "The kids are fine. Green Bean might not be the best babysitter money can buy, but he can take care of them just fine. Now stop thinking about it and enjoy yourself."

"Okay, okay." Bulma said, leaning back in her chair, trying to shake the feeling she had. She glanced to the window, frowning a bit. "I'll try."

**--- **

"Goten, hurry it up!"

"But I'm scared, Trunks! Why do I have to go first?!"

"Because, I have to make sure the coast is clear. It'll be fine, just go down the rope I made."

"Well what if it comes untied when I get on?"

"Then you'll just fall to your death."

"TRUNKS!"

"I was just kidding! Jeez. I swear it won't come untied. Now hurry before we get caught!"

"Okay..." Goten gulped as he slowly began to lower himself over the ledge of the window, gripping the rope of tied sheets firmly.

Trunks eyes shifted to the door quickly. He heard the door knob rattle as it began to open.

"Goten, go NOW! He's coming!" Without waiting for his team mate to speed up himself, Trunks 'helped' Goten by giving him a firm shove off the window ledge, jumping down after him.

Trunks grabbed the sheet directly beneath the window, placing his feet firmly against the wall like a rock climber. Goten however barely managed to grab the rope after falling a few feet in his fear, and swung uncontrollably toward the house, his back thumping hard against the wall. He let out a slight grunt holding onto the sheet-rope with one hand tightly. Trunks hushed him and stood frozen, listening to the activity above.

Piccolo blinked finding the room empty. Not only of Nail and Kami, who he had been searching for, but also the two children, the beds left both childless and sheet less. Only the comforter covered the bareness of each bed. He growled slightly. _I have enough missing persons to worry about without those two running away. _He knew that they hadn't come out of the door, unless they had escaped during his state of unconsciousness, which was too unlikely and lucky for the two to be possible. So, it was only logical that they took the only remaining exit out of the room. The window.

His eyes traveled to the window, and immediately, all his questions were answered. A sheet, tied to the foot that had been trunks' bed, stretched tightly out the window, bending sharply over the ledge from the weight that hung on it. He smirked as he watched the fabric twitch with the life that dangled from it, and walked to the window.

"Hurry up, Goten!" Trunks whispered urgently down the line. Goten whimpered, forcing himself not to look down, as he, mimicking Trunks rock-climber position moved down the taught line toward the ground.

Trunks glanced up at the window. No sign of being detected. He smirked victoriously, though it was quite cold, and the boys had forgotten about the snow, so they were dressed only in their regular clothes. The wind whipped at their single layer of clothing, making them shiver as they traveled downward.

Piccolo's voice suddenly made Trunks jump, loosing his grip on the sheet. "Cold out there, boys?"

Trunks felt his stomach drop as he physically fell backward, turning over in the air. Piccolo watched, his head out the window, his eyes widening in shock.

Goten look up to see his friend falling toward him. He reached out and caught a handful of the back of Trunk's pants, "GOTCHA!"

Trunks continued to fall until he was upside down, and suddenly the elastic of his pants lost all slack and tightened, resisting the force of gravity. Instead of crashing into the ground, the force of the fall and the direction his pants, in order to hold his weight, swung him face first against the wall.

Goten blinked and looked down watching, "Sorry Trunks!"

Trunks growled slightly and winced, pulling his face up and rubbing his bleeding nose. He blinked to see the ground less than two feet away.

Piccolo sweat dropped, watching the two. "You know, this is all very adventurous and daring and all, but why didn't you just _fly_ out the window?"

**--- **

Goten and Trunks sat on the couch, now wrapped in warm blankets, pouting slightly as they listened to Piccolo tell them off. Trunks had a bandage on his nose.

"What you did was completely irresponsible. What would have happened if you two _did_ happen to get away? Where would you go then? It's less that 20 degrees outside, and you two think it's safe to go for a merry little stroll outside in your t-shirts and jeans!" He growled some as he paced, his arms behind his back. "You're mothers would have both personally taken it as their responsibilities to kill me slowly, ripping me apart limb by limb. You disobey me, you're parents, who next? Do you really want to piss Santa off this close to Christmas?"

Piccolo watched in satisfaction as the two children's eyes grew large in fear. Yes, Piccolo knew that'd get to them. He had indeed heard of the fat guy in a red suit who, as legend tells it, delivers presents to all the good children in the earth on the eve of Christmas--Was this human myth true? He did not know. He had been considered a "naughty" child all his life, he was sure, and never received or celebrated this earthly holiday.

"You really think Santa's mad now?" Goten swallowed, frowning, his eyes sparkling with oncoming tears.

Piccolo blinked. He hadn't expected such a strong reaction. He didn't want to have to deal with a crying kid. "Err...well, I think he's probably disappointed in you two." The two looked down in shame. "But I think if you behave really well and listen to your parents, then you'll be on the "Nice" list by Christmas."

"Really?" Trunks asked, looking to Piccolo hopefully.

"Yeah, Santa forgives, right?" Piccolo tried to smile, which came out as a toothy lopsided grin.

The two boys seemed much happier afterwards.

"Now, get back to bed."

A loud growl met his command.

He blinked. "Who growled at me?" He glared.

Goten's cheeks reddened slightly. "Um, well ,my tummy did."

"I'm hungry," Trunks said, frowning, "Can't we eat before we go to sleep?"

Immediately Piccolo thought of a solution. _Pizza._ But then he remembered. They didn't make deliveries to the lookout. He cursed under his breath.

"Err..." He looked at the two. "Do you know how to make anything?"

"I know how to make Mac and Cheese." Trunks said.

"Don't have any."

"Mommy taught me how to cook Ramen noodles!" Goten jumped.

"Hey, I think I have some of those." Piccolo blinked. He led the two excited boys into the kitchen. He opened the top drawer below his microwave and found the packets of dried noodles.

Goten stood on the kitchen stool as he worked with the oven and sink. When the water in the pot was boiling he added the dried noodles. He stirred them a bit, then added the flavoring. A few minutes later, the noodles were ready.

They ate at the table, ravenously, despite the burning hot temperature of the soup. Piccolo just watched with disgust, as he usually did when viewing a saiyan meal. He sighed slightly. They soon were finished, content, and dropped their spoons.

"Alright, well that was the agreement." Piccolo crossed his arms. "You two ate, now it's time to sleep."

"Aww.." Both boys groaned in defeat, and got up form their chairs.

Piccolo followed them to the guest bedroom. They jumped into bed again and he turned out the light. The continuous orb he had created still glowed as bright as ever. He watched them get comfortable, snuggling down in the covers, closing their eyes and yawning. _Finally._ he thought in relief, and began to close the door. The door was less than an inch open when a timid voice from the other side made him flinch.

"Mr. Piccolo?" It was Goten.

He sighed and opened the door in resignation. "Yes, kid?"

"Can...can you read us a bed time story?"

He blinked. Before he had watched Vegeta in amusement tell the children packs of lies to entertain them, remembering their enlightened faces of belief and interest. He supposed doing this wouldn't hurt. He still hadn't found his counter parts, but he supposed that he should get the two asleep before searching for them. Sitting on the edge of Goten's bed, he agreed, "Alright. I'll tell you a bed time story."

"Yay!" Both Trunks and Goten grinned in excitement.

"Once upon a time..." Piccolo started. He knew how these tales began from watching. He knew that most of these tales involved nights and dark age theme characters. "There was a brave knight. He was really in love with this one chick, but she was poor, and his bastard father wouldn't let him marry her..."

_Ten Minutes Later_

"And blood was everywhere! But the knight kept swinging. He was now missing a leg, a toe, his middle finger on his right hand, half of his left arm, his left ear, his nose, and his right eye. But still he fought the mob, the pain in his limbs nothing compared to the pain in his heart. He beat down the last man, only to look up and see his lady slip away from him forever. He sank to his knees and cried out in pain, lifted his bloodied sword, and stabbed it into his heart. He fell to his side, and his greedy father grinned evilly, watching from the carriage window."

The two boys stared at him, pale, their eyes larger than he had ever seen before.

"The End." Piccolo ended and smiled, getting up. "Sleep well, kids." He walked to the door.

"WAIT!" Both voices made him freeze in his tracks.

"That can't be the ending!" Goten yelled, near tears.

"The bad guy is always supposed to loose!" Trunks added.

"The good guy always wins!"

"They're supposed to live happily ever after!"

"They _can't_ die!!!"

Piccolo jerked as both kids bust into uncontrollable tears. He sat there stunned, not knowing what he did wrong or how to fix it. A voice behind him startled him.

"He was just kidding, kids," Nail walked into the room suddenly, making Piccolo stare at him in disbelief. He had two glasses of water, and passed Piccolo, giving one each to the children, who sniffled and took a drink.

Kami stood in the doorway, arms crossed. Piccolo looked back at him, "Where the hell have you two been?"

"Singles bar." Kami answered dryly. He sighed. "Nail's idea."

"I should have known," Piccolo mumbled and looked back to Nail, who now had both kids on either side of him on Trunks' bed. He did look _happier_ than normal. And he could tell by the slight slur in his voice that the alcohol he had consumed was still taking effect.

"Piccolo just wanted to get your blood boiling." Nail said, patting the kids on the back, who still sniffled. "Now the real story goes like this..."

Piccolo watched and listened in disbelief as Nail ended his tail in a whirl of butterflies, ponies, and happy bunnies.

"And the bunnies promised the knight that the land of Carrot-World would always be open to them. The end."

Trunks seemed less than satisfied by this fluffy rendition of the story, but seemed to prefer it over the blood and sorrow of the other. Goten smiled in completely bliss. "Wow! Did the Knight and the lady ever get married?"

"Yes they did," Nail smiled down at him, nodding slightly. "And they lived happily ever after."

These words seemed to sooth both children. Nail took Goten back to his bed, and the both settled down, content. The three left the room, silently, while the children drifted to sleep.

"I need to have a word with you." Piccolo glared at the two.

Nail and Kami glanced at each other, before following Piccolo into the kitchen.

"Can I get a beer first?" Nail asked.

"NO!"

**--- **

**There you guys go! Wow this is the fastest update I've done in a long time! Well I hope to have another out soon! Please review! BAH, the sun is out today. Noooo, snow please stay! x.X **


	4. Memories and New Feelings

**Disclaimer:** I don't own any trademarks, character, or merchandise mentioned in this story.

Enjoy!

---

Nail followed Piccolo into the living room, smiling some as he looked out the window. He sat down, beginning the conversation, "Not often you see snow, especially all the way up here. Pretty cool stuff, huh?"

Piccolo stared at him as he sat across from him. "Nail, I couldn't care less about the weather. What I want to know is where you've been the last...who knows how long!" He growled some, "How dare you just leave me passed out like that!"

"Eh, well I didn't really want to wait around until you woke up just so you could yell and freak out those kids more. They don't seem so bad, I mean, come on, their just kids, they aren't that stressful..."

"They tried to escape out the three story window."

"Eh, well they are daring, I'll give them that..." Nail chuckled and rubbed the back of his head.

"Daring!? More like insane, hell-sent little DEMONS!" Piccolo growled.

"They aren't that bad!" Nail said, blinking, "I mean, sure they are rambunctious and curious and stuff, but from what I've seen a lot of it is spurred off from you." Nail grinned nervously as Piccolo glared, and looked like he was about to combust with rage, "Give them a break, you know you aren't the most...er...mild-tempered babysitter there is..." He rubbed the back of his head.

Piccolo gripped his own knee and squeezed it tightly to try and exert his anger inwardly. "I guess that may be true...But given the circumstances, they were brats from the moment they walked in the door--HELL, they were brats BEFORE they walked in the door!" He remembered the snowball incident, twitching slightly.

Nail chuckled a bit nervously, "Well they are kids...you know how kids can be. Remember when WE were kids?"

---

_"Nail, I'm bored." Piccolo complained, swinging his feet boredly. _

_"Me too. What do you wanna do?" Nail lined up his shot with his sling shot. _

_"I dunno...Let's go put a scorpion in Kami's shoe." _

_"K, I still have one in my glasses case. But hold on just a sec." Nail focused on his target, pulling the loaded rock back. _

_Piccolo watched as Nail hit a bird out of the nearby tree. It seemed to explode in a burst of white feathers. It hit the ground a few feet away. _

_--- _

"I try to forget." Piccolo mumbled.

"Yeah, well you still remember, and we were little PUNKS back in the day. Especially when we were in high school..."

_--- _

_"Nail, I'm bored..." Piccolo mumbled, scribbling a random picture on the desk he sat at during attention. The teacher had fallen asleep at their desk. He and Nail were the only two students in the room. _

_"Me too," Nail answered, writing "NAIL WUZ HERE" in large print on his desktop, "Whatcha wanna do?" _

_"Let's go unplug the microphone they use for the announcements again, and turn up the volume extra loud, so when they finally find out why it's not working, they'll blast everybody's ear drums." _

_"Sounds like a plan." They stood up and walked out of the room, as the teacher continued to snore, undisturbed._

_--- _

"Ugh, don't even _mention_ high school. Talk about awkward."

"Heh, yeah. Especially with us two being the only green guys at the school."

"With pointy ears."

"And antennas." Nail added.

Piccolo sighed. "I guess I'll give the kids a break. Childhood probably is the best time of anyone's life. That's when your the least corrupted..."

"Yeah, high school is just evil."

"College was better....but then working sucked."

"Yeah."

"...Yeah."

Nail glanced around, looking up. "Mhmm..."

Piccolo crossed his arms. "Hm..."

"Soo..."

"So what?"

"Sooo...wanna get drunk?"

Piccolo sweat dropped. He looked at the clock. "The kids parents will be here pretty soon. I don't want to be drunk when they show up."

"Why not? If they think you were drunk while you babysitted their kids, they'll never trust you with them again. That's a good thing, isn't it? You don't want to do this again..."

"True." Piccolo sincerely considered the idea for a moment, but stopped. "No...No, I don't even feel like getting wasted right now."

"Don't feel like getting wasted?! Piccolo, are you feeling alright? Anytime is the best time to get drunk!"

"Well...it would be irresponsible, that's all."

"Irresponsible? Since when do YOU care about being responsible?"

"Well..." Piccolo mumbled something under his breath, and glanced to the side.

"What did you say?" Nail's fine-hearing even couldn't pick up the murmured words.

"I said..." Piccolo paused with hesitation, then said quietly, in a barely audible tone, "I don't want to hurt the kids."

Nail blinked in sincere shock and stared at Piccolo, as if wondering what being with a heart had possessed his cold counter-part.

"I tend to..." Piccolo paused yet again, "...get violent when I become intoxicated."

"Psh, that's an understatement. I'd call it more of a...uhh…blood thirty psychotic rampage, kind of on the completely insane side."

Piccolo mumbled, "It's only if I get made while I'm drunk."

"Last time you got mad because the bartender's bow tie was crooked." Nail sighed.

"WELL, it bugged the heck out of me! It was just so crooked and he wouldn't fix it--!"

"That's called obsessive compulsive disorder--" Nail cut him off,"--To the extreme."

"It wasn't my fault..."

"Piccolo, you nearly killed the guy!"

"..." Piccolo looked at Nail innocently, "I...didn't mean to."

"I know, I know..." Nail sighed slightly, and glanced at the clock.

---

The doorbell sounded. Piccolo got up from the couch, as Nail watched him rise. "Where'd Kami go?"

"No idea."

Piccolo shrugged. "You answer the door...I'll get the brats."

Nail got up as Piccolo left the room. He walked to the door and opened it, to expose a shivering Bulma, and a tired and irritable looking Vegeta.

"Sorry we're late," Bulma apologized, and walked into the entry as Nail offered to let them inside.

Vegeta followed, also seeming effected by the freezing weather and harsh wind. "Yeah, we had to clear some drunks off the property."

Bulma mumbled, "I'm ashamed to admit that some workers had way too much wine during the party, after they knew to handle their alcohol responsibly. Especially since they are workers who usually manage large machinery!"

Vegeta put a hand on her shoulder as if to hint to her to calm down. She breathed out slightly. "Anyway, thanks for watching them, Piccolo..."

Nail blinked and opened his mouth to correct her, but a voice beat him to the punch.

"Actually, that's Nail. I'm Piccolo." Piccolo emerged from around the corner, carefully cradling a sleeping boy in each arm easily. Goten and Trunks leaned against his chest, Goten's thumb in his mouth. Trunks gripped Piccolo's shirt gently as he slept.

Bulma blinked, "Oh, sorry. Nail, I haven't seen you in the longest time!" Nail blinked as Bulma threw her arms around his neck, hugging him tightly. Vegeta blinked as well, then glanced to the side. Nail patted her back nervously, and she let go, beaming at him.

She turned to Piccolo and smiled, walking to him. Bulma gently took Trunks from his right arm. He seemed to fit her mold as he shifted from Piccolo to his mother, resting his head on her chest, his arms going around her lightly.

Vegeta walked over, and with a gentle nature that seemed awkward for the saiyan, took Goku's son in his arms. He looked down at the child as he shifted in the strange arms at first trying to find a comfortable position, and finding one, resettled into a deep sleep. His thumb again found it's way to his mouth. They were wrapped warmly in their coats, as Piccolo had made them appear on them, with his special talent. (**A/N:** Remember when he gave Gohan new clothes like him in the cell saga? Yep, that power.)

Bulma and Vegeta left with the small sleeping boys, and Piccolo and Nail found themselves again alone in the cold, seemingly empty house.

"I wonder where Kami is..." Nail wondered out loud, sitting in an arm chair.

"Old fool..." Piccolo muttered, his eyes closed as he lay on the couch.

Piccolo slowly fell into a warm, content sleep as he lay, tired and comfortable, on the long couch, his long arms over his stomach. It was around 5:00 in the morning when he suddenly opened his eyes, to find himself alone, yet at the same time complete and comforted again. Kami must have returned during his slumber, and in his peaceful state, Nail and Kami had slipped back into his being.

He sighed and looked up. Even though Kami and Nail accompanied him in mind and body, he still felt an emptiness in the house. He wondered why he felt this way, although it always was a thought which plagued him. The feeling was especially strong after the boys had left. Somehow during the time they were there, they had entertained him and filled him in a way, with a content busied feeling. Sometimes he felt so useless as he sat home alone bored, when the world was not in peril.

He decided that he would get an early start on his daily training. He got up, knowing that he had no doubt in himself that he was in perfect shape, and even beyond, but he mainly did it to pass the time. He wondered when the next time would be the boys were coming. Piccolo walked outside, not even minding the extreme cold, yet the snow had stopped falling, and now a crystalline white blanket lay over every flat surface on the look out.

Everything seemed to be calm and at peace, and the world was silent in bliss at the beauty of Piccolo's surroundings. Nature had frozen time with the white ice layers of snow, making every shape and form a softer, more beautiful thing. The white snow was like glittering icing.

Piccolo smiled softly despite himself, as his footsteps created imperfections in the previously undisturbed and flawless masterpiece of nature. He enjoyed the relaxing beauty it brought him. He moved to the Hyperbolic time chamber. He and Mr. Po Po had been working on it recently, and had figured out ways to find out how to make the amount of training time less, such as do a week of training in an hour, rather than a year's training in a day.

He set the time to 3 weeks training, which would be about 3 hours. He wanted to get away from reality, and to take a trip into solitude.

He stepped through the large door, and as it closed behind him, his last thought hovered unconsciously on that that night was Friday...and that at 7:00P.M., almost ceremoniously, Vegeta, Goku, and he would all meet at the bar that night to have....well, a good time.

---

There we go! Sorry for the long wait, but I hope you guys enjoy! R&R, please!


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